U.S. futures edged higher on Thursday morning as investors digested a mixed bag of earnings reports from major tech companies. Futures on the Nasdaq 100 (NDX), the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA), and the S&P 500 (SPX) were up 0.73%, 0.31%, and 0.46%, respectively, at 3:24 a.m. EST, January 30.
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On Wednesday, all three major indices witnessed a decline. The Dow Jones closed by 0.3%, while the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite (NDAQ) declined 0.5% each.
The fall can be partly attributed to a 4% drop in Nvidia (NVDA) stock due to concerns over increased AI competition. The market also reacted to the Federal Reserve’s decision to pause its interest rate-cutting cycle. The Fed noted that inflation remains “somewhat elevated,” suggesting a cautious approach to future monetary policy.
In the extended trading session, Tesla (TSLA) stock price rose 4%. CEO Elon Musk’s optimistic growth projections for 2025 and beyond helped offset concerns over TSLA’s weaker-than-expected Q4 results. Also, Meta Platforms (META) gained 2% on beating Q4 earnings and revenue estimates. However, Microsoft (MSFT) stock fell about 5% due to lower-than-anticipated growth in its Azure cloud services.
On the economic front, several key reports are slated for release today, such as the fourth-quarter GDP reading, Initial Jobless Claims data, and December’s Pending Home Sales reports.
Further, the focus now shifts to earnings release from another Magnificent Seven company, Apple (AAPL), due today. Other companies reporting their quarterly numbers today include Intel (INTC), Mastercard (MA), Visa (V), Southwest Airlines (LUV), Caterpillar (CAT), and United Parcel Service (UPS).
Meanwhile, the U.S. 10-year treasury yield was down, floating near 4.514%. Simultaneously, WTI crude oil futures are trending lower, hovering near $72.57 per barrel as of the last check.
Elsewhere, European indices opened higher on Thursday ahead of the European Central Bank’s (ECB) first monetary policy decision for 2025. The ECB is expected to cut interest rates by 25 basis points.
Japanese Market Ended Higher on Thursday
Japanese indices closed in the green today as investors evaluated the U.S. central bank’s decision to hold interest rates steady. Today, Japan’s Topix and Nikkei indices closed higher by 0.23% and 0.25%, respectively.
Investors should note that the China and Hong Kong stock markets were closed today for the Lunar New Year holidays.
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